Snapshots
by Castformrain
Summary: A story about young Colin Creevey's crush on Ginny Weasley. I do plan on finishing it once I have the inspiration again.
1. Chapter 1: The Hogwarts Express

**The idea for this story came to me when I was at New York in the Harry Potter museum and I saw the statue of petrified Colin Creevey. Then I remembered how Ron said that Colin and Ginny would get along well, since they both stalk Harry in the second book. He even said they should start a Potter Fan Club. The more I thought of it, the more I decided that it would be fun to write a fanfic about Colin and Ginny. So, here it is. A story about Colin's first year at Hogwarts, and his crush on Ginny Weasley.**

A whistle sounded from the Hogwarts Express.

"Just one picture, come on, Colin."

"No!" Colin said. "You don't understand, I'll run out of film if I take photos of you all, and I already know what my family looks like anyways."

"So?" his little brother interrupted. "You've got loads of film left, I saw you packing them into your suitcase last night."

"You were snooping!" Colin exclaimed, pointing a finger at his brother. "Mum, Dennis was peeking from behind the door again! Why won't you let me lock it?"

"Colin, that doesn't matter right now," his mother said, patting his blonde hair down on his head. "At Hogwarts, you're going to be sharing a room with somebody else, so you'll have to deal with having people looking in on your room. Now, just take a picture of us already."

"That way you'll have something to remember us by at Hogwarts," his father said. "You'll get homesick, Colin-"

"You've never been away for more than a week-"

"You can frame it and put it next to your bed-"

"I hear you can even make it move!-" his little brother piped up.

"Okay then," Colin said, grinning. His family moved together, and he snapped a photo of them. The smoke from the Hogwarts Express got in the way a bit, but he could still make out his family member's faces. "I don't know how I'll have it developed, though."

"Don't worry, I'm sure the people at Hogwarts will be able to do it with magic or something," his father said.

"Now don't forget to write," his mother added. "And remember to brush your teeth every morning and evening! And-"

The rest of her frantic reminders were cut off by the Hogwarts's Express's deep whistle, and Colin started to move forward to board the train.

"Love you!" his mother shouted over the noise, and Colin replied with a smile and a wave. He stepped up onto the train, pulling his heavy suitcase up with him, and he started walking down the aisle, holding his camera in one hand, and lugging along his suitcase with the other.

His head was swiveling from one side to the other: he was looking for something, or, to be more specific, someone. Finally, he reached the end of the train, where all he saw were some older students laughing over a vulgar joke. No Harry Potter. Maybe the Boy Who Lived just hadn't gotten on the train yet. Maybe-

Before he could finish his thought, the train sounded another low whistle, and it had started moving, pulling out of the station. There was no doubt about it. Harry Potter wasn't on the train.

"If you're looking for somewhere to sit, there's a spot right here," a voice said softly. Colin turned around to see a small girl, with large eyes and dirty blonde hair.

"Oh," Colin said, surprised. He hadn't even noticed the girl was there. "Thanks," he said, beginning to sit down across from her.

"No, somebody's already sitting there," the girl said suddenly. "But she left to go looking for somebody. Her brother, I think. Ronald…"

"Um, my name's Colin, not Ronald," Colin said.

"No, that was her brother's name," the girl explained in her soft, calm voice.

"Oh, okay," Colin said, sitting down next to the girl, and putting his camera between them. They sat there for a while, jostling as the train trekked along, then, the girl suddenly held out her hand and said, "Hello, Colin. My name's Luna."

"Er, nice to meet you, Luna," Colin said, shaking her hand. Luna didn't have much of a handshake: he did all the shaking, and her hand remained rather limp. "Are you a first year, too?"

Luna nodded. "I'm trying to decide which house I'd like to be placed in. My daddy was placed in Ravenclaw, but he said that the Sorting Hat considered putting him in Hufflepuff. That's where the extras go. Hufflepuff," she said, twirling her hair aimlessly. "I bet I'm placed in Hufflepuff," she added.

"Have you seen Harry Potter around here?" Colin asked.

"No," Luna said. "But here she comes now."

Colin was about to tell Luna that Harry Potter was a boy's name, but then he realized that she wasn't talking about Harry. A short, redheaded girl was walking down the aisle. She sat down across from Colin and Luna, saying, "He's not here, anywhere. I looked through all the seats, but Ron's not on the train, and I need to find him, because I think he accidentally packed my books into his suitcase." Suddenly she noticed Colin. "Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Ginny," she said.

"Colin." Colin said. "I mean, that's my name," he added. "It's Colin." his ears went a little red.

"Nice to meet you," she said. "Actually, I couldn't find Ron or Harry anywhere," she added to Luna.

This captured Colin's attention. "You mean, Harry Potter?" he asked. "You were looking for Harry Potter?"

Now it was Ginny's turn to act embarrassed. "Well, you see, he and my brother are really good friends, so, that's the only reason. I thought, you know, if I found him I might find Ron." She suddenly seemed very interested in her knees, as she took to staring at them.

Puzzled, Colin looked over at Luna, but she just shrugged.

"Um, would you two mind if I took a picture of you?" Colin asked, taking out his camera. "I'm thinking of making a collage or something to send back home to my parents, so they can see everybody I've met and everything I've done while I'm at Hogwarts. I'm hoping one of the professors will teach me how to make it move."

"So, you're a Muggleborn, then?" Luna asked.

Ginny saw the blank expression on Colin's face and explained to him, "Muggleborns are wizards with Muggle, or non-magical parents. It really doesn't matter, though. Ron says that the smartest witch in his class is Muggleborn. And sure, I'll be in the photo."

"My daddy says that it's best not to partake in photographs in the afternoon," Luna said. "It angers the Willentresses."

Puzzled, Colin looked over at Ginny, but she just shrugged.

"Okay, then, you don't have to be in the picture if you don't want to," Colin said. "Slide over a little," he said to Ginny, looking at her through the camera lens. "Don't want there to be too much light behind you. Perfect." He snapped a photo. "Are you sure you don't want your picture taken, too?" he asked Luna.

"I'd rather not suffer the wrath of the Willentresses," was her tranquil reply.

**Next chapter coming up soon! Constructive criticism is appreciated.**


	2. Chapter 2: The Sorting Hat

**This chapter is a little hectic, with all that's being said and done at the same time, so I hope you'll all be able to understand it… Luna has always been my favorite character to read, but now I'm realizing that she's also my favorite character to write! She's just so fun and random! Maybe once I'm done with this story, I'll write one about Luna. **

"_Alwyn, Patricia." _

"Which house do you think you'll be sorted into?" Colin asked, leaning over and whispering to Ginny.

"RAVENCLAW!"

"Well, my whole family's been in Gryffindor, so I suppose that's where I'll end up…" she replied. "Usually families end up getting sorted into the same houses, you see. Gryffindor is for the brave of heart."

"_Ayson, Tyler." _

"My daddy says that they shouldn't really be depending on a hat to sort us into our houses," Luna said, not taking her eyes off of the Sorting Hat. "He says scarves are much more reliable… It has a nicer sound to it, too. The Sorting Scarf. It's a poetic device, the alliteration…"

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"I still don't see Harry anywhere… do you think something happened to him?" Colin whispered, scanning the Gryffindor table with his camera at the ready.

"_Banks, Adam." _

"If he's with Ron, then yes, I'm sure they both got into trouble somehow," Ginny muttered. "I just hope Harry's not hurt."

"RAVENCLAW!"

"…and then there's the onomatopoeia. That's a nice word, don't you think? Onomatopoeia. Aw-noe-mah-toe-pee-ah," Luna murmured, rambling on about poetic devices.

"_Calland, Cassandra." _

"How does the Sorting Hat know which house to put you into?" Colin asked, getting nervous as McGonagall drew closer to his name.

"I said, _Calland Cassandra."_

"I don't know, it was charmed a really long time ago," Ginny whispered in reply as a ditzy young girl stumbled up to the Sorting Hat. She was starting to become annoyed by all of Colin's questions, but he was a Muggleborn, after all. He couldn't be expected to know these things.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Metaphor. Met-a-for. Hmm…" Luna murmured dreamily.

"_Creevey, Colin."_

The name rang throughout the Great Hall for a second, and Colin stepped forward, anxious to get his Sorting over with. Then he felt a tugging at his robes, and turned around to see Ginny standing there.

"Your camera, Colin!" she hissed.

"Oh, yeah," he said, and a thousand nervous butterflies blossomed in his stomach as he handed it over to Ginny. He heard a few titters from the other first years, and he blushed a light shade of pink, hurrying up to the stool, where he sat down and waited.

When the Sorting Hat dropped over his eyes, everything went dark, and eerily quiet. It was as if the Sorting Hat had simply sucked all of the light and sound out of the air, replacing it with the malodorous smell of ancient, leathery fabric.

_Hmmm, you'll be any easy one to sort, _croaked an old voice that seemed to come from everywhere. _Hardworking, and very persistent as well. You, my boy, are a perfect specimen of Hufflepuff. So, in that case,- _

"No!" Colin shouted, then he realized that he'd said it out loud. The whole Great Hall could hear him. Trying his best not to think about the giggles from the crowd, mostly because he doubted his face could go any pinker without exploding, he repeated silently, _No. _Ginny's words echoed in his head…_"Well, my whole family's been in Gryffindor, so I suppose that's where __**I'll**__ end up…Gryffindor is for the brave of heart…"_

_Er, what about Gryffindor? _he asked the Sorting Hat.

_Gryffindor?_ the hat croaked. _Hmm, you are determined… yes, you could be in Gryffindor, but I believe Hufflepuff is a better fit- _

Colin interrupted,_ I'd like to be in Gryffindor, please. _Then he fell silent, leaving the rest for the Sorting Hat to decide.

…_Well, you do have potential in Gryffindor… _the Sorting Hat mused, mulling it over for a few seconds. _Well, I suppose if it's your preference._

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Grinning from ear to ear (whether it was from relief or pride, even he couldn't tell; maybe a mixture of both) Colin retrieved his camera from a smiling Ginny, hurried down the steps, and plopped down at the Gryffindor table as "Dunham, Robert"made his way up to the stool.

And as soon as he sat down, he whipped out his camera and snapped a photo of the Sorting Hat.

**Yes, I know the romance part is moving very slowly, don't worry, it'll pick up in the next chapter. But don't be expecting too much drama in the romance department. Remember, this is just a crush story, which is why you'll notice that I labeled the first Genre as Friendship and the second Genre as Romance. **

**Please, Please, review! Constructive criticism is very much appreciated, as always.**

**Chapter Three will probably be up in a week or so. Until then, Colin says goodbye. :)**


	3. Chapter 3: The Flying Lesson

**Here it is, after a really long time: Chapter 3! I read all of your reviews, and I used them to try and improve my writing for this chapter. Enjoy... and review!**

After more than a few persistent "Up"s, Colin finally managed to get his broomstick off of the ground and get himself up in the air. For a few seconds, he wobbled about so precariously that he considered yelling for Madam Hooch to run beneath him, ready to catch, but after a while, he managed to right himself.

The view from up on his broomstick was picture-perfect, even if he was only 5 meters above the ground. Colin sorely wished he'd been able to bring his camera up with him, but Madam Hooch had firmly insisted that he needed full control of both hands to use the broomstick. So here he was, camera-less up in the sky.

Once most of the other students had kicked off on their broomsticks as well, Madam Hooch yelled up to them, saying that they had permission to maneuver and fly around. The first thing Colin did was scan the skies for familiar faces, and the first one he noticed was, of course, Ginny's. She had been one of the first to get up in the air, right after Adam Banks. Colin could already tell she was natural in the air. _Probably because of all the practice she gets with her brothers,_ he thought to himself.

He pulled around his broomstick in her direction and flew over, finding her doing zig-zags and circles.

"I heard that Harry Potter became the Seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team when he was just a first year. Is that really true?" Colin asked, trying to snag Ginny's attention.

She pulled back on her broom, came to a slow stop, turned around, and nodded. "Yep. I'm surprised Ron isn't jealous. He's wanted to be on the school Quidditch team ever since he was five," she said, grinning. "But it's really rare for a first year to be on a Quidditch team. Actually, I don't think it's ever happened before."

She let one hand leave her broomstick for a second to hitch a stubborn strand of red hair behind her ear, then she leaned in, about to attempt another series of zig-zags.

"Um, maybe you'll be selected to be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team too," Colin piped up suddenly, moving up to Ginny's side.

For a moment, she looked at him with such happiness that he started to feel the butterflies in his stomach blossoming again, but then she shook her head. "No, I'm not interested in being on the team right now. It would be weird, having to play with all those older kids."

"Harry's about your age," Colin pointed out.

Ginny stared down at the castle for a while, and nodded. "Yeah… yeah, he is, isn't he?" Then, she seemed to suddenly notice that Colin was staring at her as well, and she blushed.

"Well, Madam Hooch is yelling for us to keep flying," Ginny said, and she was right. She and Colin had been hanging in the air for a full minute. Without another word, she spun around and started zig-zagging again.

Colin watched her for a few seconds, making sharp turns and graceful dips, her hair flying out from behind her like bright red streamers, and he smiled. Still, he was a little unnerved by Ginny's behavior. Down on the ground, he heard Madam Hooch yelling at him to keep flying, so he started to veer around, nearly bumping into Luna Lovegood as he did.

"Oops!" Colin said. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there-"

"It's fine," Luna said. She was drifting lazily on her broomstick, trying to pull a splinter from her finger.

Colin knew he had to tell somebody about Ginny's odd behavior lately, and, other than Ginny herself, Luna was his closest friend so far.

"Luna, whenever I talk about Harry, you know, Harry Potter… whenever I talk about him with Ginny, she gets all weird about it," Colin explained slowly, trying to find the right words. "It's like she's-"

"She likes Harry," Luna interrupted.

Colin's eyes widened a bit, and the butterflies vanished. Now they were replaced by cold little needles on his skin.

"What do you mean?" he asked. He didn't know what she was talking about. But… then again, now that she mentioned it…

"Well… isn't it obvious? That's why you two are such good friends, you both really like Harry Potter," Luna replied.

_That's not the only reason… is it?_ Colin thought to himself. Perhaps Luna was right. Perhaps the only reason Ginny even hung around him was because she liked hearing him talk about Harry. After all, Colin did consider himself to be an expert on Harry Potter already: he'd only been at this school for one day, yet he'd already managed to snap seven photos of Harry, in three different locations. Maybe Ginny was trying to find more about Harry through him.

_But that's… that's ridiculous_, he told himself, and he shook the idea out of his head. "Well then, good for her," he said to Luna.

Luna stared at him almost sympathetically for a while, as if she knew what he had been thinking, then she went back to picking at her splinter as she drifted away.

For the rest of the Flying lesson, the whole class (Ravenclaws and Gryffindors) tossed around a Quaffle, and Colin never met Ginny's eyes. Once they were back on the ground, he picked up his camera from the short, well-kempt grass of the Quidditch pitch and put it around his neck where it belonged.

He watched as Ginny got off of her broom, and started walking towards him.

"Is something wrong?" she asked him. He couldn't help noticing with annoyance, now that they were back on the ground, that she was just an inch taller than him.

"No, I'm fine," Colin said, putting a cheery grin on his face. He took out his camera. "Smile."

Ginny did smile, and Colin took a picture of her.

"Your collage sure is going to have a lot of pictures of me, isn't it?" Ginny asked, laughing a little.

"Yep," Colin said. He watched as Ginny walked away, and he stood alone on the Quidditch pitch for a few seconds.

He snapped another picture of the Quidditch hoops, as a backup for his collage. Just in case...

**If there's any aspect of my writing you liked in this chapter, write a review. If there's any aspect of my writing you think could be improved, write a review! I plan on writing two or three more chapters.**


	4. Chapter 4: The Staircase

**Sorry for not updating! I've remembered how much fun it is to write this story, and I will finish it, if it is the last thing I do!**

As Halloween started to approach, Colin's concern about Ginny and Harry washed away to the back of his mind. Hogwarts was full of amazing things and people to take pictures of, and his favorite subject was Harry Potter. Apparently, Harry was no stranger to the media: he'd already had a photo taken for the newspaper with Gilderoy Lockhart, one of Colin's favorite teachers.

Colin talked to Professor Flitwick, who told him that once he had all of the pictures ready for his collage, he would be happy to charm them into motion.

Colin talked to Harry, who kept very quiet about the things that were going on in his daily life, a fact that annoyed Colin a bit.

But most of all, he talked to Luna and Ginny, who were quickly becoming his best friends at Hogwarts. Each day, Ginny gave Colin reasons to smile in adoration, and each day, Luna gave Colin reasons to frown in confusion.

For a month or so, this period of tranquility and contentedness seemed like it would never come to an end. But, unfortunately, that all changed two days before Halloween. Professor Flitwick was teaching the Gryffindors and the Slytherins how to charm pumpkins in order to ready them for the Halloween feast in the great hall.

"Now remember, the motion is flick and swirl," he said, demonstrating. "Enlargio!" As he swirled his wand, the pumpkin enlarged in size until it was roughly as large as a couch. Some of the other students' eyes widened in surprise: Colin was one of those students. However, Ginny seemed unfazed.

_She must see this kind of stuff all the time at home,_ Colin thought to himself. His spirits sank. Colin was such a novice to all the aspects of the magical world, while Ginny was such an expert. Maybe she only considered him to be a like a little brother.

"You may have noticed that I have placed miniature pumpkins on some of your desks. Now, split off into groups of two, and at the end of the class, we'll hold a contest to see whose pumpkin is the biggest!" Flitwick announced, obviously delighted with the activity he'd planned for the day.

Colin's desk was pumpkinless… but Ginny's wasn't. He slid his desk over to hers, resulting in a loud screeching noise as the legs rubbed against the tiled floor.

"Want to be partners?" he asked quickly.

Ginny shrugged and smiled. "Sure!" Together they whipped out their wands, and started their attempt. Unfortunately, no matter how precisely they tried to swish and twirl, and no matter how clearly they declared the words to the spell, their pumpkin never grew any larger.

Colin glanced around to room to see the other students' progress. Only one other pair of students had managed to enlarge their pumpkin. The two Slytherins smiled smugly. Their miniature pumpkin had become as large as a Quaffle.

In a few more minutes, every student in the class had at least made some alteration to their pumpkin, even if it hadn't been the desired result: except for Ginny and Colin.

Colin tried to focus on his own pumpkin, but the Slytherins kept teasing him and Ginny while Flitwick's back was turned, mouthing the silent chant of "Squib, squib squib!"

Colin saw Ginny bite her lip, refusing to make eye contact with the mocking Slytherins. Bubbling up with frustration, Colin made a jabbing motion at the pumpkin, and commanded once again, "Enlargio!" Suddenly a bright red spark shot out from the tip of his wand, hurtling through the air like an arrow. It ricocheted off of the pumpkin, and, to his horror, collided with Ginny's forehead, leaving a steaming mark. The Slytherins burst into roaring laughter, while the Gryffindors gasped in concern. Flitwick jumped off of his stack of books and hurried over to Ginny, stumbling on his robes.

"Oh dear… what did you do to her?" he explained, prodding the mark frantically.

"What? I didn't do anything!" Colin exclaimed, his heart starting to pound just as frantically.

"I'm fine, it just stings a little!" Ginny shouted, slapping away Flitwick's hand.

"It seems as if you've hit her with a variation on a Welt Hex," Flitwick muttered, still trying to prod the mark despite Ginny's protests. "It may only sting a little now, but if it isn't properly treated in an hour or so, that mark willl have grown to the size of a Snitch." He turned to Colin, saying, "Well, what are you standing around for? Quickly, take her to Madam Pomfrey's!"

Colin hastily stood up and stuffed his wand back into his pocket. "Come on, Ginny." He took her hand, and they quickly exited the room, narrowly avoiding being tripped by the Slytherins.

As soon as they were out in the halls, his face started to turn pink again, and he refused to meet Ginny's gaze.

"Listen, it really doesn't hurt-" Ginny began, but Colin interrupted her.

"No, no, it's my fault, I'm so sorry," he stuttered.

"Colin, listen!" Ginny shouted, and they stopped in front of a staircase. "You held up really well against those Slytherins, but it's perfectly normal for witches and wizards to slip up on spells if they're being distracted."

"Yeah, but-"

"No buts! And, for the record, that was the coolest Welt Hex I've ever seen. Usually there's just a little puff of smoke," Ginny told him.

Colin looked up, finally meeting her eyes. "Really?"

Ginny nodded. "Yeah. I would know, my brothers have tried to use it on me about a thousand times." She smiled, and Colin managed to smile weakly along with her. She was so pretty when she smiled… the way her cheeks creased up with little dimples. She didn't just smile with her mouth, her eyes were also in on the act; and for the next few seconds, Colin forgot about the unsightly red mark on her forehead.

"You have a nice smile," Colin mumbled, noticing vaguely that they were holding hands.

"You too," Ginny said, locking onto his eyes.

The butterflies took off in Colin's stomach again, and he found himself rooted to the floor. Ginny's smile was slowly fading, and she was drawing closer. The butterflies became frantic, ramming themselves into Colin's chest, trying to force their way up his throat: then her lips landed on his cheek for a split second, and the butterflies became still. It only lasted for a split second, then Ginny withdrew, and everything went back to the way it had been before.

No more words passed between them after that, and Colin left Ginny up at the Hospital Wing with Madam Pomfrey. On his way back down to Charms, Colin found himself standing at the foot of the staircase where she had kissed him.

He took out his camera.

He focused on the staircase.

And snapped a picture.

**No Luna in this chapter... I'd better include her in the next one, or else she'll tell the Willentresses to attack me. Stay tuned: There's more to come. You guys know the deal, right? Review, review, review! Blah blah blah, Praise and constructive criticism are all appreciated, blah blah blah.**


	5. Chapter 5: The Prefect

**If you don't remember the events of the second Harry Potter book very well, now might be a good time to refresh yourself. This chapter may be a little short, and not all that exciting, but it's essential to the plot of this story. Enjoy!**

Only one more day until October thirty-first, yet Colin never tired of pestering Harry Potter. After all, he planned to be a reporter for a wizard newspaper someday, and what better subject to practice on than the Boy Who Lived? Luna had tried numerous times to convince him that The Quibbler was the most reliable paper, but Ginny later explained to him that she only said it because her father was the editor.

While following Harry around, Colin had managed to pick up a few things besides pictures; for instance, he knew that Harry was on especially good terms with Gilderoy Lockhart, which only made Colin even more delighted to get to know him.

Ever since that fleeting kiss on the cheek, Ginny seemed to be slowly drifting farther and farther away from Colin. They still spoke to each other often, but she was beginning to look paler, more worried. Colin was a little concerned about Ginny, but he never got up the courage to ask her what was going on. He figured it was just a phase: girl stuff, probably. He shouldn't get involved. It would be over soon.

In the meantime, he busied himself with stalking Harry Potter, as usual. Taking the time to memorize Harry's schedule for the week had put him behind on several homework assignments, but it was _completely_ worth it. Now Colin was able to catch Harry before and after classes without fail, no matter how much he attempted to avoid him.

Colin was about to finally get Harry's autograph when Percy approached him to "ask a few questions."

Colin froze: had Percy found out about the kiss? He'd always found the prefects to be rather intimidating, and the fact that Percy was Ginny's older brother didn't help at all.

While Colin was frozen in place, Harry quickly made his escape, and Colin realized that now he had no choice but to answer Percy's questions.

"Okay, sure," he said, slipping his camera back around his neck. He shivered a bit: The flaming red hair, plus the fact that Percy was so much taller than him only made the prefect seem more intimidating.

"No need to get all aquiver," said Percy, attempting to dismiss Colin's fears with the wave of a hand. "I'm just here to ask you about Ginny."

If those words were intended to make Colin feel less afraid, they did the exact opposite.

"Yes?" Colin squeaked, fumbling with his camera.

"She simply hasn't been herself lately," Percy continued, pacing back and forth. "I tried to give her some Pepperup potion but… er… that didn't really go as well as planned." Percy coughed, turned up his nose, and continued. "I know that you are one of Ginny's closer friends here at Hogwarts, so I thought you might know what's going on."

Colin shook his head, relieved that Percy hadn't asked about the kiss. "I've been wondering about that too," he explained quickly, "But, I- But I think it's best not to worry about it. You know… maybe it's just girl stuff."

Percy looked at Colin skeptically, but eventually nodded, accepting the idea. "Maybe you're right," he said.

An awkward silence followed.

"…Taken any good pictures with that camera?" Percy asked uncomfortably, in an attempt to break the silence.

Colin smiled in front of Percy for the very first time.

"Yep, tons. I'm gonna make a collage later and send it to my parents back at home. You want me to take a picture of you?" he asked, holding up the camera.

"Ah, no, I'd rather not be-"

_-Snap!-_

"Too late." Colin grinned.

* * *

><p>"So, Percy tried to interrogate you too, then?" Luna asked, taking a sip of what looked like ever-bubbling tea. It was dinnertime now, and all of the students had gathered at the Great Hall to eat. The atmosphere, as usual, was light and laid back, and conversational chatter could be heard buzzing in the background. All of the students were here; but Ginny, however, was nowhere to be found.<p>

"Yep," Colin said, nodding halfheartedly. His cheerful attitude had quickly faded away. He looked at the tantalizing food laid down before him, but decided that he wasn't really all that hungry. "Do you know where Ginny went?" Colin asked.

Luna shook her head slowly, taking another sip of tea. A particularly large bubble floated up to the surface, and popped in her face. She calmly wiped the liquid off of her nose, then continued, as if nothing had even happened. "I haven't the slightest idea… Actually, I haven't seen her since this morning. She was absent from Potions, remember?"

She was right: Ginny had been absent from every class since breakfast.

"Hmm…Come to think of it… her pale complexion… plus the way she's been acting lately… it's quite possible that the Willentresses have laid their eggs in her ears," Luna continued, taking a small spoon and stirring the tea. "Fall is mating season for them. That's what she gets for being in all of those afternoon photos, I suppose."

Colin had learned by now that it was best just to ignore Luna once she started talking about this sort of thing. As much as he wanted to stick his nose into this mystery and go hunting for Ginny, he had to restrain himself.

"I'm sure she'll show up tomorrow," he said, speaking more to himself than to Luna. "After all… she can't miss Halloween!"

Luna smiled, and nodded. Satisfied with this conclusion, Colin's appetite returned, and he dug into his dinner with heightened spirits.

**Review! Tell me what made you smile, or tell me what impressed you, or tell me what could be improved. Or tell me all three!**


	6. Chapter 6: The Diary

**Ta Da! The penultimate chapter is here. I told you I'd finish this story if it was the last thing I did! Well, actually I'd already written this chapter months ago, but I forgot to publish it. Brace yourself: it's the longest chapter yet. Really, if you haven't refreshed yourself on the events of the second book yet, you should do so. Or else not much of this is going to make sense.**

Halloween finally arrived, and sure enough, Colin did see Ginny during the first class of the day, standing near the back of the greenhouse. Colin knew something was wrong: Ginny always sat at the front of the class, ready to learn. In addition, her skin looked even paler in comparison with her vivid orange hair, which unsettled Colin even further.

Ginny would look at him from time to time, with an almost worried expression. Once class was over, Colin walked up to Ginny and met her eyes with an equally worried expression.

"What's wrong?" he asked, being so bold as to reach out in an attempt to hold hands like they had done at the staircase.

Ginny didn't accept the offer, and instead put her hands behind her back. "Nothing," she said. "I'm fine."

"But I didn't see you yesterday," Colin said. "Where were you?"

"I was just… taking a break, okay?" Ginny replied. She frowned, and Colin suddenly felt ashamed at questioning her.

Ginny started to turn around, but before she left, she asked one question. "Hey… do you... know if there are any... roosters around here?"

Colin was puzzled by this, and hesitantly replied, "Yep, I think Hagrid has some."

Ginny's eyebrows sank into a troubled expression, and Colin hurriedly apologized, though he wasn't quite sure why roosters would upset her. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you upset. How about a picture?" he held up his camera to his eyes and offered a smile.

"No thanks," Ginny muttered, shaking her head. Without another word, she turned her back on him and walked off, her colorful hair flowing behind her.

Colin watched her leave, then turned around to pick up his books. He wondered why she hadn't wanted her picture taken. It wasn't like her... "No, it's perfectly normal," he muttered, reminding himself of how pale Ginny looked at the moment. "I mean, I wouldn't want to be in a picture if I looked like that."

Just as he was about to leave, he noticed that Ginny's books were lying on the floor. _She must have forgotten to bring them with her, _he told himself, looking them over. The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1)… One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi… a little blue book labeled Notes… and finally, a small, thin book with a shabby black cover.

Colin blinked.

He turned over the small black book, looking for some sort of title, but could find none. Colin glanced around the greenhouse hesitantly, but the only person remaining besides him was Professor Sprout. Besides, she was too busy watering the mandrakes to even notice that he was still there.

So Colin tentatively opened the book to the first page.

"T.M. Riddle," he whispered, tracing his fingers along the letters.

He flipped to the next page, which was blank. So was the next. And the next. All of the pages in the book were blank. Why on earth was Ginny carrying around an empty old book that read T.M. Riddle?

He was observing the back cover for hints when he felt a chill, as if someone was watching him. He turned around slowly, then realized, to his relief, that it was just Professor Sprout. Quickly, he assembled all of his books, including Ginny's, and stuffed the mysterious black book into his pocket. Colin hurried out of the greenhouse, stumbling on his robes as he walked down the path to the castle. In his haste, he bumped into an older student, Justin Finch-Fletchley. "Sorry!" Colin squeaked. "Er… have you seen Ginny Weasley around here?"

Justin frowned, but nodded. "Yeah, she went that way." He pointed towards Hagrid's garden and strode past Colin before he had the chance to thank him.

Running while carrying a stack of books is not an easy feat. Therefore, Colin was relieved to hear a familiar voice calling out behind him, saying, "Do you need help with that? My daddy says it's bad luck to drop school textbooks on the ground, you know…"

"Luna!" Colin said, letting her take off some of his load. "Thanks a ton, Ginny left these in Herbology. I was told she went this way." he nodded his head towards Hagrid's garden.

"I saw her go that way too," Luna said, wiping a strand of hair out of her eyes. The bright sunlight made her hair seem almost white, and Colin had to squint just to look at her. "Maybe she wants to see Hagrid's pumpkins. They're very large."

"But we have Transfiguration in five minutes!" Colin exclaimed. "And she's gonna need her Transfiguration textbook! Come on!"

The two of them jogged over to the garden of giant pumpkins, and this time Colin held up his robes with his free hand to make sure he wouldn't trip over the hems. Once they came close enough, Colin felt a tug on his sleeves. "There," Luna whispered. "I saw a flash of red hair. It could be a Frillywing, but they only leave their nests during the summer solstice, so I think it's safe to say that it's Ginny."

Colin poked his head out from behind the gargantuan pumpkin, his camera dangling around his neck. Surprisingly enough, it really was Ginny, and not a Frillywing. He was about to yell out to her, but something stopped him.

Something was wrong.

Ginny was walking slowly and silently, as if in some sort of strange trance.

"Here are the books, Colin," Luna said, placing the textbooks on a bed of vines, careful not to let them touch the ground. "I have Potions next, and it's all the way down in the dungeons, so I should really get going…" Colin nodded, still not taking his eyes off of Ginny. He heard Luna's footsteps drawing farther and farther away until they finally disappeared.

Colin looked closer, and realized that now Ginny was walking towards the chicken coop peering at the chickens. She was looking at them, like she was… sizing them up.

Almost as if by instinct. Colin's hands reached to the camera around his neck, and moved it up to his eyes. He focused on Ginny and the chicken coop.

He snapped a photo with a quick clicking sound… and Ginny whirled around, searching for the source of the noise.

Finally, her eyes locked onto him. Soon, they flitted to the small black book poking out of Colin's pocket.

"Wha…what are you doing here?" she asked nervously. Her eyes never left the book, and she started to fidget guiltily.

Colin gulped, then stepped out from behind the pumpkin, saying, "You left your books at Herbology." He took a deep breath, and asked, "What's going on, Ginny?"

"What do you mean? I'm just… just taking a look at the chickens, that's all." Ginny replied. "Thanks for picking up my textbooks for me."

"Sure thing," Colin said, handing them over to her. "By the way, what's this?" he asked, pulling the thin black book from his pocket. "It says T.M. Riddle."

"It's nothing. I found it lying in the halls," Ginny said quickly. "May I have it back, please?"

"Well, why are you carrying it around with you?" Colin asked. He felt the same way he did whenever he spoke with Harry Potter. "You know it's empty, right?"

"It's none of your business," Ginny replied, an edge starting to creep into her voice. "Give it back, please."

"Ginny, you can tell me what's going on!" Colin said. "We're friends, maybe even… even more than friends!" His ears were turning pink again, from a mixture of exasperation and embarrassment. "Remember the kiss you gave me?" This was the first time he'd ever tried to talk to her about what happened on the staircase.

"Colin, that kiss didn't mean anything! It was just a peck on the cheek!" Ginny shouted, her ears beginning to redden as well. "I was just trying to help you feel better, that's all! Now give me the book!"

Colin let the reality sink in, and he stared at her silently. "Are we even friends then?" he finally asked. "Because you sure haven't been acting like it. You've been avoiding me, me and Luna both. Are we your friends or not?"

"Give me the book!"

"Answer my question!" The chickens were clucking nervously now, fluffing up their feathers and shuffling away.

"I don't know, okay? Just give me the book!" Ginny shouted. Her eyes were no longer nervous, but angry and piercing, like a snake's.

"Fine!" Colin sniffled. "Take your stupid book!" He dropped it on the ground, and it fell open, once again revealing the words T.M. Riddle.

Ginny immediately bent down, swiped up the book, and stormed away, leaving Colin and his camera all alone by the chicken coop.

**One chapter remains. I've already started to write it, and by the looks of it, it'll be the shortest one by far. As usual, review. Please tell me what you liked and/or what you think could have been improved.**


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